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Lookup NU author(s): Michael Prediger, Dr Harish Datta
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
© 2024 by the authors. This study explores how select microRNAs (miRNAs) influence bone structure in humans and in transgenic mice. In trabecular bone biopsies from 84 postmenopausal women (healthy, osteopenic, and osteoporotic), we demonstrate that DLEU2 (deleted in lymphocytic leukemia 2)-encoded miR-15a-5p is strongly positively associated with bone mineral density (BMD) at different skeletal sites. In bone transcriptome analyses, miR-15a-5p levels correlated positively with the osteocyte characteristic transcripts SOST (encoding sclerostin) and MEPE (Matrix Extracellular Phosphoglycoprotein), while the related miR-15b-5p showed a negative association with BMD and osteoblast markers. The data imply that these miRNAs have opposite roles in bone remodeling with distinct actions on bone cells. Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) variants confirmed earlier DLEU2 associations. Furthermore, a novel variant (rs12585295) showed high localization with transcriptionally active chromatin states in osteoblast primary cell cultures. The supposition that DLEU2-encoded miRNAs have an important regulatory role in bone remodeling was further confirmed in a transgenic mice model showing that miR-15a/16-1-deleted mice had significantly higher percentage bone volume and trabecular number than the wild type, possibly due to prenatal actions. However, the three-point mechanical break force test of mice femurs showed a positive correlation between strength and miR-15a-5p/miR-16-5p levels, indicating differential effects on cortical and trabecular bone. Moreover, these miRNAs appear to have distinct and complex actions in mice prenatally and in adult humans, impacting BMD and microstructure by regulating bone cell transcription. However, detailed interactions between these miRNAs and their downstream mechanisms in health and disease need further clarification.
Author(s): Reppe S, Reseland JE, Prijatelj V, Prediger M, Nogueira LP, Utheim TP, Rivadeneira F, Gautvik KM, Datta HK
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: International Journal of Molecular Sciences
Year: 2024
Volume: 25
Issue: 23
Online publication date: 27/11/2024
Acceptance date: 22/11/2024
Date deposited: 07/01/2025
ISSN (print): 1661-6596
ISSN (electronic): 1422-0067
Publisher: MDPI
URL: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252312724
DOI: 10.3390/ijms252312724
Data Access Statement: The data for postmenopausal biopsies have been submitted to the European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI; ArrayExpress repository, ID: E-MEXP-1618). The data on male biopsies are accessible through accession number E-MEXP-2219. The scripts for analysis are available at https://github.com/Bioinformatics-Support-Unit/python-scripts/tree/master/zic1 (accessed on 26 April 2016).
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